Went to MK on Monday afternoon/evening(did Studios in the morning) and wow was it crowded, waited almost two hours for Haunted Mansion and never made it on the Jingle Cruise or the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. Are crowds that size the norm now, even during a "Value" day?

We watched the Holiday special they ran on tv to kick off the holiday season and my kids were begging to go. To me it sounds like a nightmare of over crowding. Is it worth dealing with the crowds for the Holiday events?

Disney is never really 'dead' anymore like you used to see. They do a very good job with special events, groups, and international guests to fill in the times of year that used to be empty. It takes some planning, but I don't understand ever waiting 2 hours for Mansion or missing out on something like Jingle Cruise.

That brings up a good point. We're in the very early stages of planning WDW. Never been before, but have been to both parks in Anaheim. I was able to get on everything by just having fastpasses for the big rides (Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, etc.) and riding things with lower wait times in between (Pirates, Star Tours, etc.). Does that strategy still work at MK too? I mean, I don't really care if Haunted Mansion is a two hour wait if we ride six other things during those two hours.

Top Wood: 1. The Outlaw Run 2. The Phoenix 3. The El Toro 4. The Voyage 5. The TwisterTop Steel: 1. The Millennium Force 2. The Skyrush 3. The Magnum XL-200 4. The Diamondback 5. The MaverickTop Parks: 1. The Disneyland 2. The Dollywood 3. The Silver Dollar City 4. The Knoebels 5. The Holiday World

Disney is never really 'dead' anymore like you used to see. They do a very good job with special events, groups, and international guests to fill in the times of year that used to be empty. It takes some planning, but I don't understand ever waiting 2 hours for Mansion or missing out on something like Jingle Cruise.

Our three days of parks is the last few days in Jan. so i am hoping it is fairly light crowds. I planned it so we will be at parks Monday-Wednesday. This was the cheapest I found rooms to be so heres to hoping minimal crowds are involved lol. Only thing I am sad about is the Toy Story Land not being ready but I am not brave enough with a 4 and 2 year old to attempt during the summer.

ytterbiumanalyst wrote:That brings up a good point. We're in the very early stages of planning WDW. Never been before, but have been to both parks in Anaheim. I was able to get on everything by just having fastpasses for the big rides (Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, etc.) and riding things with lower wait times in between (Pirates, Star Tours, etc.). Does that strategy still work at MK too? I mean, I don't really care if Haunted Mansion is a two hour wait if we ride six other things during those two hours.

ytterbiumanalyst wrote:That brings up a good point. We're in the very early stages of planning WDW. Never been before, but have been to both parks in Anaheim. I was able to get on everything by just having fastpasses for the big rides (Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, etc.) and riding things with lower wait times in between (Pirates, Star Tours, etc.). Does that strategy still work at MK too? I mean, I don't really care if Haunted Mansion is a two hour wait if we ride six other things during those two hours.

Yes, that absolutely works at MK as well.

Awesome, good to hear. Thanks!

Top Wood: 1. The Outlaw Run 2. The Phoenix 3. The El Toro 4. The Voyage 5. The TwisterTop Steel: 1. The Millennium Force 2. The Skyrush 3. The Magnum XL-200 4. The Diamondback 5. The MaverickTop Parks: 1. The Disneyland 2. The Dollywood 3. The Silver Dollar City 4. The Knoebels 5. The Holiday World

ytterbiumanalyst wrote:That brings up a good point. We're in the very early stages of planning WDW. Never been before, but have been to both parks in Anaheim. I was able to get on everything by just having fastpasses for the big rides (Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, etc.) and riding things with lower wait times in between (Pirates, Star Tours, etc.). Does that strategy still work at MK too? I mean, I don't really care if Haunted Mansion is a two hour wait if we ride six other things during those two hours.

Good plan. As mentioned by others, you really have to arrive before opening or EMH if they apply that day. I've been on the busiest days (I'm going this Christmas), and have never had a problem. This year, we will be at the gate in the dark at 6:30am for 7am opening. Will ride Seven Drawfs, Peter Pan, followed by the Frontier land rides, then adventure land. All rides will be under 30 minutes, some near walk ons. We will finish around 11am or 12pm to watch the parade and then head back to the hotel for lunch/a swim/A NAP/etc, while watching the hordes of crowds arrive. After supper, we will return and use our FP on Space Mountain, Drawfs, Thunder, and watch the fireworks. Tip: try to make a FP after fireworks to allow the crowds to leave, it's almost unbearable after fireworks, be prepared. This strategy works for all the other parks too, as I would never find myself in a Disney park, during afternoon at Christmas.

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